The Pelaw Inn, Pelaw, Gateshead

An attractive and quite large roadside pub with the fake half-timbered look that can be seen in many towns up and down the country. This one has been completely opened out inside, and, being the only pub in the village, I imagine it gets pretty busy at times. The occasion of my visit, a brief stop off at opening time on the way to Sunderland, was not one of them. I was pleasantly surprised to find a solitary hand pump on the bar, slightly disappointed to see that it was serving the (definitely not local) Robinsons Dizzy Blonde, even more despondent when it took eight or nine pulls to get my half pint into a glass, then pleasantly surprised (again) to find that it was reasonably palatable. Nevertheless, I only stayed here for as long as it took to make sure I didn't have to wait too long on Pelaw station for the next Metro train towards Sunderland.